Netanyahu and Gov. Brown to sign pro-business pact

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, center, shakes hands with supporters before the screening of the television documentary "Israel: The Royal Tour" at Paramount Studios on Tuesday, March 4, 2014, in Los Angeles. Netanyahu flew Tuesday from Washington, D.C., to California, trading a focus on the geopolitics of the Middle East for a Hollywood screening and visits with Silicon Valley tech entrepreneurs. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is making a swing through the Silicon Valley where he met with high-tech leaders and signed a pro-business agreement with Gov. Jerry Brown.

Sitting next to Netanyahu, Brown said Wednesday their agreement builds on their respective strengths in research and technology to confront critical problems both Israel and California face including drought and cybersecurity.

Wednesday's visit followed Netanyahu's meetings with President Barack Obama in Washington, D.C., on Monday and his appearance Tuesday at the Los Angeles premiere of a television documentary that features him.

Netanyahu planned stops at Stanford University, Apple Inc. in Cupertino, a meeting with WhatsApp co-founder Jan Koum, a Jewish Ukrainian immigrant who sold his company to Facebook Inc. for $19 billion last month.